China’s disciplinary enforcers shift focus from corruption to poor performance
- Targeting officials who do not fulfil their duties is an increasingly important task for the Communist Party’s top watchdog, according to a new study
- Anti-corruption drive is still a key part of its role, but the focus has shifted towards low-level ‘flies’ rather than the high-ranking ‘tigers’
It said the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) had shifted from being a “fear-inducing machine” primarily focused on corruption to becoming a “behaviour modification machine”.
The report, by MacroPolo, an in-house think tank at the Paulson Institute, also predicted it would be used to “decouple” the relationship between politics and business in the third phase of its operations.
The Chicago-based think tank said the fear factor was “effective but unsustainable”, because it meant too many officials were frightened to show any initiative in case they are punished for making mistakes.
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Beijing’s top leadership is aware of the problem. On Saturday at the opening of the National People’s Congress annual meeting, Premier Li Keqiang hit out at officials who neglect their duties and are “out of touch with reality and go against the will of the masses”, warning them they must “live up to the expectations of the people”.